El Al Resumes Service

April 25, 1978

TEL AVIV (Apr. 24)

E1 A1 resumed service this morning ending a shutdown by management that grounded its fleet of jets for 20 days during the height of the pre-Passover tourist season. The suspension was lifted last night as a result of on agreement between management and the airline employes to negotiate the differences between them and reach a settlement within three months.

The employes have promised no strikes or work stoppages while negotiations are in progress. The government, which owns E1 A1, apparently backed away from its demands that the workers agree to certain concessions before service is resumed. One of the subjects to be negotiated is the proportion of airline salaries paid in foreign currency.

The shutdown of E1 A1 was not a strike. It was precipitated by a wildcat work stoppage early this month that management saw as the last straw in a series of labor disputes that have bedeviled the airline for the past two years. Service was suspended by order of Mordechai Hod, director general of E1 A1, who was supported by Finance Minister Simcha Ehrlich. Histadrut, which had frequently backed the airline against unauthorized work stoppages in the past, accused the management this time of a lockout.